Court in Bulgaria refuses to extradite detainee to Russia

SOFIA, October 21. /TASS/. A court in the Bulgarian capital on Tuesday ruled that businessman and human rights activist Nikolay Koblyakov, who is accused of embezzlement, should not be extradited to Russia.

Businessman Koblyakov, the founder of the Paris-based human rights association Free Russia, was detained at Sofia airport on July 30 at the request of Russia and with an Interpol warrant.

He is accused of embezzling €1.2 million in 2004-2005 together with unidentified persons. The businessman left Moscow in July 2010 after his home was searched and he was summoned to the Russian Investigative Committee. He was under home arrest before his case was considered in court.

A Bulgarian news agency reported the Sofia court decided not to extradite Koblyakov, saying the case and the accusations were not clear.